The harper Nicodemus, under the influence of dangerous drugs forced on him by an ambitious priest, has a vision. It leads him to Damonryan, a marooned voyager from space and his marvellous infocom. But as the two set out to find a place for the spaceman, Nikkie has to wonder: was it the man the god send him for, or his machine?

The sand lines and city states of Mundi were carved out in blood long ago, paid for in the lives of kings, dukes, noble knights and peasants. But on the eastern frontier reputations have yet to be earned...
Turned freelancer, the enigmatic Leopard Knight leaves the Triple Kingdoms of his birth to quest and find his own fortune.

Twins are conceived deceitfully by an impotent Emperor. The twins are born during the siege of a bandit fortress, and then are separated by the Emperor, who deprives them of psychic power. The twins are reared separately, as Bandit and Heir, and as they become men, their paths begin to cross and clash. After discovering their true origins, the twins are reunited, their empathy link reestablished.

Twins are conceived through stealth and poison by an impotent Emperor beset by a Peasant General to the south and a bandit to the north. During negotiations with a neighboring Emperor, the General assaults the other Emperor, putting the impotent Emperor in a bind. The General's mate rectifies the insult, delivering her mate into the neighboring Emperor's custody, and herself into his embrace.

The Empress near term, the General lays siege to the Noble Bandit's fortress on the Empire's northern border as the price of his repatriation. During the siege, the twins are born, and the Sorceror separates their empathy link, depriving them of psychic power, dying in the effort. The Emperor then separates them, faking one twin's death and sending him northward to live under the care of a bandit.

The twins are reared separately, as Bandit and Heir. The Heir goes north to assassinate five bandit leaders, where he is mistaken for the Bandit. The Bandit mates the daughter of an assassinated leader. The Bandit's father attempts to assassinate the Heir's father, but dies in the attempt. The Heir completes his task as his rival and look-alike declares himself Emperor of the northern lands.

The Bandit-turned-Emperor impersonates the Heir and assassinates the Commanding General. The Heir discovers that his father the Emperor faked the death of his twin brother twenty years before, and that the Bandit is his brother. The Heir resigns to make peace with the Bandit. He and the Heir join with their fellow Emperors and disable the four Imperial Swords, ending the Sovereignty of the Swords.